Author: Editor
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American Scientists and Prominent Hollywood Jews Back Iran Nuclear Deal
A posting from MIT’s Laboratory for Nuclear Security and Policy observes that “the five authors and 24 co-signers are some of the world’s most knowledgeable experts about nuclear weapons.” It cites in particular Richard Garwin, “a physicist who helped design the world’s first hydrogen bomb [and] served as a science advisor to three presidents, both…
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A Film About Iranian Divorced Woman
Ida panahandeh’s first feature film ‘Nahid’ has been selected in Cannes Festival 2015 official selection. Nahid is a divorced woman who lives in a northern city of Iran. She has to choose between his son and his love but she does not want to face the dilemma which others have made to her. Nahid tries…
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The Reliability of Memory
I teach a course on personal identity, and one of the authors we read is John Locke, the 17th-century English philosopher who tells us that our memory constitutes who we are. He poses the following thought experiment: if a prince and a cobbler were to exchange memories, so that the body of the cobbler carried…
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The Boys of Kabul Dreams
Kabul Dreams is a young ensemble blooming on the same grounds. Being the first modern punk rock band in Afghanistan, the group – formed in 2008 by lead guitarist and singer Sulyman Qardash, along with Mujtaba Habibi (their former drummer), and bassist Siddique Ahmed – introduced its own idiosyncrasy of criticism and discontent following the…
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Soz and Nauha and Singing for God
In this song Kabir evokes the image of our body, our self, being like the five-stringed musical instrument – the tambura. Made of the four elements and containing the fifth element – shoonyata or emptiness – we hold within our self the capacity to resound to a higher sound. But only if we learn to…
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Bizarre Ancient Persia in Snoop Dogg's Video
Iranian singer Amitis Moghaddam – stage name Amitis – released a bizarre ancient Persian-themed music video on Monday featuring well-known American rapper Snoop Dogg. The song is in English, although Amitis’ past tracks were mainly recorded in Farsi. On Facebook, Amitis has around 64,000 followers compared to Snoop Dogg’s 35 million, leaving us scratching our…
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Ajam Feels Like a Stranger
A few years ago, when I was searching on the Internet for Iranian mahali (folk) music, I came across the music of a London-based group called ‘Ajam’. Their music not only impressed me, but intrigued me as well. After listening to several of their singles, I made it a point to follow up with the…
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An Arabic love Song by Israeli Band
The music video for “Habib Galbi” (Love of My Heart), a sorrowful Yemeni folk song, opens with a simple shot across the desert. Inside a small hut, an exasperated woman pulls back the woven curtain of a Bedouin tent and croons in Arabic over a hollow, hypnotic drumbeat and ghostly minor key: “Love of my heart…
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Will You Die in the Next Five Years?
Doctors claim to have found a way to predict a person’s risk of dying in the next five years – using a simple questionnaire. With predictable questions on smoking habits and history of illness, but also more nuanced inquiries about the pace of your walk, your attitude to your own health and even how many…
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Half And Half Hair Colors
That’s right, the days of agonizing over whether or not you should dress your tresses up in a single shade of pink or purple may now be a thing of the past, since split-dyed hair lets you rock both beloved colors in one awesome hairstyle. These half and half hairdos look insanely awesome and give…
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A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
Just imagine mixing Dracula wandering in London with the Middle Eastern vampire girl thatcovered with the Vail, hunting down the bad men. Then continue imagining a high contrast sort of the expressionist style of cinema with lots of weird but cool Iranian characters living in a nightmarish city surrounded with the oil wells… That is the…
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Tehran Based Musician Arash Akbari
As a young producer from Tehran, Arash Akbari has made his name releasing on Oído Records and on compilations with fellow experimental producers making similar sounds from Iran. Playing mostly guitar and laptop, exploring Ambient, IDM, Drone, Experimental music. While plenty has been written about his work, with ‘lush’ and ‘warm’ in almost every review,…
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Afro Iranian Music: Dingomaro
On Iran’s Gulf coast a particular culture has grown from centuries of naval history and nearby trade. African roots in Iran result in remarkable and distinct customs, including styles of Persian-African music and dancing that is particular to Bandar Abbas and the south. The film trailer is below narrated in Persian by musician Hamid Said, named…
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Second Most Googled Model in the World
Kendall Jenner is a part of an emerging fashion movement which has been dubbed “Social Media Modelling” by Harper’s Bazaar and ‘the Instagirl era’ by Vogue On November 26, 2014, Jenner was added to Models.com’s Top 50 list and placed #1 on their combined Social list:Jenner ranked as the #1 most followed model on Facebook and…
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Tirgan, Festival of Iranian Arts and Culture – Toronto
Tirgan refers to an ancient festival traditionally held in the month of July , inspiring what is currently world’s largest celebration of Iranian arts and culture, taking place biennially at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto, Canada. Having attracted over 130,000 visitors in 2013, upwards of 150,000 visitors are expected to attend the next Tirgan Festival,…
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#ImNoAngel
The female body image debate is just as important for men as it is for women. This week has been particularly good for bringing the idea of female body image acceptance into the fore. That’s good news for all of us – not just women struggling with their perceptions of their appearance. In the past…
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Slow TV Movement
The concept started with the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation’s coverage of the, at that time, longest professional rail fan driver’s eye view, showing the complete 7-hour train ride. It was followed by the live coverage of 134-hour voyage of a ship Both events received extensive attention in both Norwegian and foreign media, and were considered a…
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The Surfer Girls Of Iran
The 28-year-old Irish surfer has spent several weeks in the past three years riding the waves in a remote region of what is – to Western minds – a little-understood state. In doing so, she has helped to break down cultural boundaries, and introduced Iranian women to a sport that was always waiting on their…
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Solitude is Enlightening But Could Go Wrong
To take oneself out into the wilderness as part of a spiritual quest is one thing, but to remain there in a kind of barren ecstasy is another. The Anglo-American mystic Thomas Merton argues that ‘there is no greater disaster in the spiritual life than to be immersed in unreality, for life is maintained and…
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Microbes Are The last Life On Earth
As soon as I started feeling secure and let the Jules Verne side of me enjoy the beautiful expectation from all the scientific changes and the possibility of achieving new energy that could prolong life forever, I encountered a new dilemma. Scientists say we do not have much time. According to the new research: ”…
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Iranian New Year – Dance in Montreal
Celebrating Norouz, the Iranian New Year, in Montreal, Canada. The word Norouz (or Nowrouz) means “New Day” which is the first day of spring in Iran. During the two weeks holiday of Norouz, people either travel, or visit their family and friends to celebrate this traditional event. Norouz is one of the main parts of…
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American English Way of Speaking in a Gibberish Song
A parody by Adriano Celentano for the Italian TV program Mileluci is sung entirely in gibberish designed to sound like American English. Celentano is the best-selling artist in Italy with Mina, and the best-selling male Italian singer with more than 150 million records to date
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The Real Time Profits by Internet Giants
Click on the image and see the real time profits by internet giants http://pennystocks.la/battle-of-internet-giants/
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Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty
Born in the East End and the son of a taxi driver, Alexander McQueen was the quintessential bad boy made good. He had brains and brawn, having survived over ten years as a solo designer and being brought into the Gucci Group stable, which bought a 51 per cent stake in his company 2002. In…
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May I See You Home? 19th Century Calling Cards for Date
In the 19th century, gentlemen used calling cards to formally introduce themselves to new acquaintances and to call upon friends and relatives in a dignified way. But there was another type of card used when a gentleman wanted to get the ball rolling with a lovely lady in a more casual way: the acquaintance card.…
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Travel to Iran Is Better Than Disneyland
The logistics are simple. Fly to Dubai, arrive at the busiest airport on the entire planet. Transit to Shiraz, Iran – flight time, less than an hour. Various airlines, every day, take your pick. I paid less than hundred for the ticket. Just outside of Shiraz is Persepolis – the UNESCO World Heritage listed ruins…
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Leonard Nimoy’s Photography of Full Body Women
These photos of full-figured women were taken by the late Leonard Nimoy in 2007 to challenge entrenched concepts of beauty. They echo the work of artists from Botticelli to Matisse and Helmut Newton. The models are from a burlesque group in San Francisco, the Fat Bottom Revue. http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/gallery/2015/mar/03/the-full-body-project-by-leonard-nimoy-in-pictures All photographs by /courtesy of R Michelson Galleries…
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The Greatest Enemy of Truth
Apart from being one of the most revered scientists to ever live, Albert Einstein (1879-1955) was also an active supporter of various social causes such as the early American civil rights movement. He was and continues to be uniquely of science and of popular culture. Image source Big Think
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A Shaolin Monk’s Tips On How To Stay Young
1. Don’t think too much. Thinking takes energy. Thinking can make you look old. 2. Don’t talk too much. Most people either talk or do. Better to do. 3. When you work, work for 40 minutes then stop for 10 minutes. When you look at something all the time, it can damage your eyes and…
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Slap Her
What happens when you put a boy in front of a girl and ask him to slap her? Here is how children react to the subject of violence against women this video has been shot by http://www.fanpage.it
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American Sniper and Its Ideological Contradictions
From an ideological standpoint, it is too easy to damn Clint Eastwood’s American Sniper, but from a cinematic perspective, the film relies on skilfully staged action scenes and a narrative rhythm that never loses its momentum. While watching the film, I tried to ignore its ideological agenda by being absorbed in pure drama and the…
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Rich People Live Longer
It is widely known that countries with high per-capita wealth have long life expectancies, but just how strong is the correlation across the board? In this video from The Gapminder Foundation, Hans Rosling, professor of international health at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, explores the visual data that details the link between gross domestic product…
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Syrian Toddler Pulled Alive From Rubble After Aleppo Bombing
A toddler completely buried under rubble in Syria has been pulled out alive by rescuers who dug with their bare hands. This video, posted on YouTube by Syrian activists, appears to show a recovery team frantically digging to rescue the trapped youngster in Aleppo, reportedly after government bombings After apparently hearing cries while scouting for…
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“Snow” A Good Film by Mehdi Rahmani
“Snow,” the new film by Mehdi Rhamani, is a gloomy film about a middle class family that, because of financial difficulties, is on the verge of disintegration. Although the subject is somehow repetitive, the film’s atmosphere is quite absorbing. The entire film happens in a rather large house that the family has to give up…
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Milan Kundera’s New Novel in 13 Years
Milan Kundera’s New novel The Feast of Insignificance is a “wryly comic yet deeply serious glance at the ultimate insignificance of life and politics, told through the daily lives of four friends in modern-day Paris”. Said chief executive Stephen Page: “It feels incredibly relevant to the world we live in now. It’s very funny, and also…
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Speaking English by an Iranian TV Reporter!
Speaking english by an Iranian journalist!
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Spiritual Bribery
In traditional Thai culture, believers will put offerings of food or gifts out as a means of thanks or respect. Bangkok based photographer Akkara Naktamna has always noticed these humble displays on the street corner or in front of a spiritual place, but it wasn’t until later in life did he began to take an…
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Brides Race to Win a Wedding Dress
The 150-metre dash requires competitors to don wedding gowns and running shoes in a sprint through the Serbian capital. Belgrade resident Sanja Cigoja was the first to cross the finishing line out of the 100 ladies taking part, with an impressive winning time of 19 seconds.The winner and two runners-up receive numerous awards including the…
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The Animal That Wouldn't Die
A small freshwater animal – the uncommonly resilient hydra – challenges the belief that all living things must die. The idea that living organisms are born to reproduce and ultimately die is one of the most common and widely accepted ideas about life across cultures. But is it true? Using whimsical animation, The Animal That…
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Cartoon for Hottest Year Ever; 2014
All of these scientific centres and global climate watchers claim that 2014 was the warmest year ever Global Analysis – Annual 2014 http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sotc/global/ 2014 on track to be hottest year on record, says US science agency http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/oct/20/2014-on-track-to-be-hottest-year-on-record-says-us-science-agency climate central.org http://www.climatecentral.org/news/2014-on-track-to-be-warmest-year-on-record-18041 NOAA http://www.nasa.gov/press/2015/january/nasa-determines-2014-warmest-year-in-modern-record/#.VL_igUfF9Z8 2014 warmest year in Europe since 1500s http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e92579ae-8580-11e4-ab4e-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3PThtypDi
